rck329
07-28-2008, 12:39 PM
Hello all,
I apologize in advance for the length of this post, but I just wanted to give all the facts I could to help with diagnosis...
I've been searching all over the forums to try to figure out what's going on with my discus but to no avail.
Tank is only about 3 months old. When it was one month old, cycled and stable I added 2 discus and 4 rams (the other fish were already in). The discus were from a reputable dealer who I believe get there stock from Discus Hans. For the first month, everything was great - they were shy at first, but warmed up quickly - never darting or hiding when I approached the tank. They would come to the front of the tank waiting for food when you approached.
Then, disaster hit. End of tank dump on my CO2. I came home and all the fish sluggish hanging at the bottom of the tank. The rams and neons were very pale, the discus actually were not as bad, but nonetheless... Quickly did a 50% water change and massive aeration. Over the next day or so, everyone was doing much much better, the discus were skittish, but otherwise looking healthy. Over the week, everything came back to "normal" except for the skittishness in the discus. I though I was out of the water with things and the discus would eventually warm back up. Not so lucky. After a week of what I though was recovery, the rams got pale and lethargic. I assumed the stress from the CO2 overdose had made them susceptible to some disease. I observed them closely, but really couldn't see anything specific that matched something on a disease chart. Pale, lethargic, clamped fins - maybe a little popeye. I dosed Maracyn 2 and Maroxy as a best guess. I lost 3 of 4 rams, but the other fish including the discus all seemed to come around.
The discus however remained skittish.
At this point I am about 2 weeks post medication. Everyone seems healthy and eating. When I'm not around the tank, the discus come out and explore the tank, and seem totally fine. If I approach too quickly however, they dart into the corner. Approaching slowly, they will stay put... cautiously. Slowly, drop some food in the tank and they gobble it up. Appetites seem fine. Feces is red (tetrabits), but sometimes maybe a little stringy? I say sometimes because I haven't really noticed the stringiness lately.
Are they still infected with something? I observe them very closely, but just cannot see any physical symptoms. Do I just need to wait out there nervousness? 2 weeks seems like enough time for them to be back to normal. Could the CO2 OD have caused irreversible damage?
Obviously, water parameters are my first thought, but they all seem to be inline (see below). From what I can measure, it's the same water conditions as I had in the first month with them when they were happy and well adjusted.
Any advice or comments would be greatly appreciated.
Here's the specs:
parameters - pH 7, KH 8.4, CO2 20-25 ppm (during the day), Ammonia 0, Nitrates 15-20 ppm, Nitrites 0
equipment - 29 gallon planted tank, Eheim 2026 filter, pressurize CO2
fish - 10 neon tetras, 3 otos, 2 corys, 6 amano shrimp, 2 discus (~3"), 1 blue ram
plants/scape - giant vals, swords, java fern, dwarf sag, onyx sand substrate, driftwood
food - Tetrabits, flake, shimp pellets, Hikari bloodworms (occasionally)
ferts - EI dosing scheme NKP and traces (Flourish and Flourish Iron)
Ryan
I apologize in advance for the length of this post, but I just wanted to give all the facts I could to help with diagnosis...
I've been searching all over the forums to try to figure out what's going on with my discus but to no avail.
Tank is only about 3 months old. When it was one month old, cycled and stable I added 2 discus and 4 rams (the other fish were already in). The discus were from a reputable dealer who I believe get there stock from Discus Hans. For the first month, everything was great - they were shy at first, but warmed up quickly - never darting or hiding when I approached the tank. They would come to the front of the tank waiting for food when you approached.
Then, disaster hit. End of tank dump on my CO2. I came home and all the fish sluggish hanging at the bottom of the tank. The rams and neons were very pale, the discus actually were not as bad, but nonetheless... Quickly did a 50% water change and massive aeration. Over the next day or so, everyone was doing much much better, the discus were skittish, but otherwise looking healthy. Over the week, everything came back to "normal" except for the skittishness in the discus. I though I was out of the water with things and the discus would eventually warm back up. Not so lucky. After a week of what I though was recovery, the rams got pale and lethargic. I assumed the stress from the CO2 overdose had made them susceptible to some disease. I observed them closely, but really couldn't see anything specific that matched something on a disease chart. Pale, lethargic, clamped fins - maybe a little popeye. I dosed Maracyn 2 and Maroxy as a best guess. I lost 3 of 4 rams, but the other fish including the discus all seemed to come around.
The discus however remained skittish.
At this point I am about 2 weeks post medication. Everyone seems healthy and eating. When I'm not around the tank, the discus come out and explore the tank, and seem totally fine. If I approach too quickly however, they dart into the corner. Approaching slowly, they will stay put... cautiously. Slowly, drop some food in the tank and they gobble it up. Appetites seem fine. Feces is red (tetrabits), but sometimes maybe a little stringy? I say sometimes because I haven't really noticed the stringiness lately.
Are they still infected with something? I observe them very closely, but just cannot see any physical symptoms. Do I just need to wait out there nervousness? 2 weeks seems like enough time for them to be back to normal. Could the CO2 OD have caused irreversible damage?
Obviously, water parameters are my first thought, but they all seem to be inline (see below). From what I can measure, it's the same water conditions as I had in the first month with them when they were happy and well adjusted.
Any advice or comments would be greatly appreciated.
Here's the specs:
parameters - pH 7, KH 8.4, CO2 20-25 ppm (during the day), Ammonia 0, Nitrates 15-20 ppm, Nitrites 0
equipment - 29 gallon planted tank, Eheim 2026 filter, pressurize CO2
fish - 10 neon tetras, 3 otos, 2 corys, 6 amano shrimp, 2 discus (~3"), 1 blue ram
plants/scape - giant vals, swords, java fern, dwarf sag, onyx sand substrate, driftwood
food - Tetrabits, flake, shimp pellets, Hikari bloodworms (occasionally)
ferts - EI dosing scheme NKP and traces (Flourish and Flourish Iron)
Ryan